5 REASONS WHY MARIJUANA SHOULD BE LEGALIZED

5 REASONS WHY MARIJUANA SHOULD BE LEGALIZED

While not all of America has fully legalized the use of marijuana, a majority of the American people have already shown support to completely repeal all marijuana prohibitions. There are most people who have a negative perspective on cannabis users but they have the faintest idea of the many positive opinions in favor of the legalization of this substance. It’s time to take a stand to the next person that claims negative to all marijuana especially ones that treat smokers differently at work. Here are valid, research-based arguments to dispute that.

It has not caused chaos in half of the country’s states.

Almost half of all U.S. states have already made laws in favor of the use of marijuana. Some of them have either legalized the medical or recreational use of the substance, lessened penalties for those who are in the possession or held back in serious enforcement. This has resulted in a decrease in the budget allocated for interdiction and prosecution in the said states. In fact, ever since Colorado legalized recreational cannabis, both the state’s violent crime and property crime rates have decreased.

It costs more to keep marijuana illegal.

Billions of dollars are spent each year on law enforcement in America’s war on drugs. Since marijuana is still technically illegal in the country, marijuana consumers are prosecuted day by day — and there are a lot of them. The amount of money spent chasing these users may be put to good use in other more important projects and causes. On the flip side, making marijuana legal will allow the government to be able to collect taxes on it, which increases the government’s funds in the long run.

It is less toxic than other legal substances.

There have been numerous studies that show that in the list of the most toxic recreational drugs, cannabis is actually at the bottom. In fact, alcohol, a legal substance that can be consumed by adults aged 21 and up, made it as the top contender. Technically, marijuana happens to be 114 times safer to consume than alcohol .

It possesses legitimate medical benefits.

Over the last two decades, there has been a dramatic shift in opinions regarding medical marijuana. In fact, many conservative states have already passed laws that permit the use of strains of cannabis in epilepsy patients. According to the Times, cannabis has shown to alleviate a number of disorders. Aside from epilepsy, marijuana has alleviated pain from AIDS and relieved nausea from cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.

Prohibition has not helped.

There hasn’t been any solid evidence that shows how the prohibition of marijuana has helped the country get rid of it. In fact, it may have even caused more problems, such as an increase in drug use. Since marijuana is illegal, a lot of the American youth can get access to it. After all, drug dealers do not have any age restrictions with regard to who they are selling pot to. Prohibition may be countered through honest and reasonable approaches to marijuana, including proper education of the substance for both adults and the youth.

A lot of Americans have opened their minds to the possible benefits that marijuana can bring. With half of the country approving the legalization, it is only a matter of time for this shift in perspective to eventually be realized. However, there are still some places out there that require companies to drug test their employees annually. If this issue arises and takes a stand on its attributes, maybe then people can stop spending too much on these tests and can give it back to some areas that need it. The marijuana market is creating a great opportunity for employment.